Autism and Assessment
Four Areas For Assessment
Assessment and Teaching
• Pupils with ASD present with a varied and unique range of
difficulties
• They therefore require an individualised and pupil-centred
teaching approach
• The teaching approach should blend a range of strategies
relevant to the individual needs of the pupils
• Education assessment should highlight the unique strengths
and needs of each pupil so that an informed decision can be
made regarding the most appropriate intervention methods
Good Teaching Begins with
Good Assessment
Factors to Consider
• Increase the likelihood of developing good
educational plans.
• Addresses current level of functioning
• Helps identify what aspects of behaviour we
might reasonably expect to change and how.
• Determines what resources are required to do
this.
• Makes targets achievable for pupils.
Assessment
• Individualisation
• What to teach
• How to teach it.
Two Types of Assessment
• •Formal:
• –Usually done by using instruments for which
training is needed.
• •Informal:
• –Usually done by teachers; observation and
use of materials on hand.
Importance of Formal Assessment
• Allows for assessment of current skills
• Formal testing may not translate into functional
goals
• Easier to assess range of skills
• Can utilize a variety of strategies and materials to
access skills
• Can occur in natural settings
• Problems with generalization
The Process
Formal
Assessment
Refined
Goals
Goals
Teaching
Informal
Assessment
restructure
Mastery/independence
Results
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Good at factual writing.
Great rote memory
Poor at creative writing
Try a story map.
Cloze procedure.
Look For:
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Emerging skills
Interests and motivators
Strengths
Learning style
Organization, attention, independence,
approach to materials, problem-solving
strategies
• Weaknesses
• Emerging Skills
• Emerging skills—backbone of teaching in
autism
• Defined as: Performance on a task that is not
independent, requires structuring or
assistance from teacher, or repeated
demonstrations to complete—thus, partial
Learning Style
Learning/Problem-Solving Style
Purposeful Action:
•Using materials appropriately?
•Impulsiveness?
•Tentativeness?
•Doesn’t take time to plan actions?
•Need extra time to process and plan?
•No response without prompts?
•Perseverates?
•Repeats past routines?
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Adjustment to testing situation
Degree of cooperation
Thought patterns
Spontaneity and initiative
Response to failure or success
Anxiety level
Fine and gross motor control
Need to repeat directions
•Revise or self-correct answers
•Think aloud or give final answers
•Reaction to praise
•Reaction times
•Awareness of time limits on timed
tasks
Informal Assessment
• Assessment vs. teaching
• Dynamic & ongoing process - no right or wrong
answer
• Know what scoring criteria are
• Issue of “Can’t vs. Won’t”
• Make time within classroom routine for informal
assessment
• Share information with family & team members
Teaching Techniques
Teach one new thing at a time
• Use knowledge of unique learning style
• Capitalize on visual strengths
• Minimize use of excess language
• Incorporate interests
• Clarify sequence, especially finished
• “Worst day” scenario
• Teach to the visuals
Make it predictable
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What comes next?”
“How much do I need to do?
“When are we finished?”
“Do I get to have a break?”
“Can I play with that toy again?”
“How am I doing?
Mastery
• Provide multiple opportunities for
practice and familiarity
• Teach competency and fluency
• Data helps to evaluate
– success of teaching strategies
– what variables may be affecting
learning
Blended Approaches
Pupil Needs Analysis and
Autism Specific
Education Plans
Ben Videos
Ben’s Needs Analysis form
Identifying Needs:
Needs Analysis Form
Why?
• Starting point for getting to know the pupil
• Starting point in planning for individual needs
• Vehicle for communicating, collaborating and reporting
• Draws together in one document all assessment
information-formal and informal- on child
• Draws together information from all interested parties
concerned with the child
• Assists in the transfer of information
• Will assist you in deciding on the different intervention
strategies
Why develop……?
• Should document and celebrate the
child’s progress
• Establishes child’s learning strengths
and priority learning needs
• Enables a holistic approach
• Facilitates the setting of targets for EP
• Informs teaching and learning
Gathering Information
• Reports from previous teacher
• Summary assessments from Educational
Psychologist, Speech and Language Therapist,
Occupational Therapist, Behaviour Therapist and any
other professional working with the pupil.
• Parents
• Child (if appropriate)
Skills Analysed
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Basic communication skills
Oral language (receptive/expressive)
Cognitive and Functional Academics
Physical and Motor Abilities
Sensory and Perceptual Abilities
Independent Living Skills
Adaptive Behaviour
Challenging Behaviour Triggers
Skills
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Self Esteem
Emotional and behavioural development
Behaviour in different contexts
Child motivation and triggers to motivate
How child responds to others
Social Competence
Strengths and Needs
• Observations should be objective and based on
evidence
• List the child’s strengths
• List the child’s needs
-Needs must be relevant to child’s learning
-Expressed in a positive manner
• Establish Priority Needs
• EP Targets will come from and be informed by,
Priority Needs
• Reviewed and updated
What to Include in a Needs Analysis?
• Biographical details
• Family details
• Diagnostic
assessment
• Medical/ physical/
sensory needs
• child’s own view of
self
• Class Previous
teachers
observations
• Observations from
others
• child’s current level
of performance
(formal and
informally assessed)
Schools should consider:
• Template
• Access
• Storage
Education Plans- Individual Profile and
Learning Programme the key to blending
approaches
“The Individual Education Plan tells
where the child is,
where he should be going,
how he will get there,
how long it will take and
how you will know when he has arrived.”
(Arena, 1987)
Target Setting
Target will….
• Identify the outcome the child is expected to
learn
• Specify the conditions under which the child
will demonstrate the behaviour
• Set the criterion /standard that will be used to
determine whether behaviour has been
learned
Examples
• Target 1:During the creative lesson each week(condition
and criteria) , John will use a story map, to write a
paragraph of 10 lines. (outcome)
• Target 2: When eating lunch, (condition) Jack will sit in
his seat, (outcome) 3 out of 5 days a week (criterion).
• Targets may not always contain all of the three elements
but remember, the more specific the target, the easier it
is to measure
Target =
• outcome
+
• Condition
+
• Criterion
SMART Targets
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Specific
Measurable
Achievable
Realistic/Relevant
Timed
Some words work, some words don’t
Target Setting
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EPs should focus on three or four key individual targets
Targets should be a statement of what the child will learn
Targets should be related to key areas
child’s strengths should underpin the targets set and the
strategies used
• Setting too many targets at one time is not appropriate,
these should be limited to priority areas
• ‘The perfect IEP will identify how to address barriers to
learning’ Dr John Hunter ETI inspectorate
Identifying
Needs
Setting EP
Targets
Reviewing
the EP
The EP
Process
Monitoring
the EP
Implementing
the EP
(Strands of action)
child
involvement
Teaching
strategies
Resources –
Human,ICT,
Physical layout
Implementing
The EP
(Strands of Action)
Parental
support
Grouping for
Teaching purposes
Are monitoring
Arrangements
linked to
Success criteria
Who will monitor
and record progress
Monitoring
The EP
When will EP
be monitored
(i.e. ongoing)
Where will outcomes
be recorded
Monitor
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Teacher observation
Therapist observation
Classroom Assistant
child
Parents
Formative assessment (ongoing)
Views of all
Relevant people –
How will these
be sought
To what extent
have targets
been met
Reviewing
the EP
How effective
was the EP?
What is the
future action
Review…
• If target is not achieved - consider the
following:
 How effective were the targets?
 Does it need to be divided into smaller steps?
 Do strategies/resources need to be reviewed?
 Should the child continue with same target for
another specified period?
 Does the target need to be changed altogether?
Successful EPs
• Collaboration of class teacher and
relevant professionals in drawing up plan
• Parents are involved in EP process and
support the plan
• Involvement of the child
• EPs are well written, focused and
understandable
• Relevant people have copies/access to
EPs
Pupil
needs
analysis
Education
Plan
Review
Implement
Monitor
Ben
Get to
Know Ben
PNA
Education
Plan
Example
Summary
Case Study
Ideas for
addressing
priority
needs